Music Review: MotÃ¶rhead: Aftershock (2013)

With an October 22, 2013 on UDR Music release date, metal legends MotÃ¶rhead will be back with their 21st studio album “Aftershock.” Some will say that there is no point in reviewing a MotÃ¶rhead release because every song sounds the same. I toss those close-minded comments aside and am just happy that we are still receiving original output from Lemmy and crew. The classic trio may not alter their sound much, but their sound is what got them to legendary status amongst their dedicated fan base.

With “Aftershock,” there are subtle nuances to individual songs were MotÃ¶rhead stays close to their roots, but there are some hooks that show that the band is more than simply rehashing classic riffs like those on Ace of Spades and other classic MotÃ¶rhead tracks. I was a huge fan of 2010’s “The World is Yours” as I found it to be more refreshing than some of their more recent work. “Aftershock,” while perhaps not as strong as their last release, stands on its own two feet very nicely though.

The first song that I would like to make a note about is the non-MotÃ¶rhead-like Lost Woman Blues. Even the title tells you that this one is a little out of the norm for MotÃ¶rhead. Of course, their brand of rock is bleeds the blues, but the opening three minutes to this tracks shows how deep the blues run with the band. Even when the song ramps up a little towards the end, the blues licks behind Lemmy’s vocals are so melodic. While very different, this is sill one of my favorites on the album.

Of course, we still have the groovy songs that have that dirty MotÃ¶rhead sound like the opening track Heartbreaker and the fast number entitled End of Time. Songs like Do You Believe and Death Machine are littered with some solid lead guitar work with the latter display the heavier crunching bass sound that is classic Lemmy.

Dust and Glass is another blues jam with great guitar work similar to Lost Woman Blues. Lemmy’s voice is much cleaner on this track, but he is no less effective. Silence When You Speak to Me is a track that I want to love simply because of the main riff, but the song ends of falling flat during the chorus.

Overall, MotÃ¶rhead shows no sign of slowing down, and with the recent health scare that we just had with Lemmy, it is nice to see that the band is still raising hell and raising their middle finger to the masses with their abrasive rock sound. Some may foolishly believe that Lemmy is immortal, but his recent health scare shows that he is mortal indeed. Relish the fact that MotÃ¶rhead will not be around forever and enjoy their new music as much as you can now. “Aftershock” is surely no slouch by and means.